As Toledoans and people across the state pray for Mayor D. Michael Collins’ recovery after his recent cardiac arrest, one local man jumped into action.
Jeremy Baumhower, a Toledo Free Press columnist who operates the blog IHeartGlassCity, is friends with the mayor and said Collins’ hospitalization hit him hard.
Baumhower approached Toledo Fire & Rescue (TFD) about helping to organize a CPR education event.
The result is Save the Beat, two free two-hour CPR classes to be offered Feb. 14 at SeaGate Convention Centre, 401 Jefferson Ave. ProMedica is sponsoring the event. Toledo Free Press is a media sponsor.
RELATED: Good Samaritans credited with helping save mayor’s life
RELATED: Knight Zmijewski: Citizen CPR saves lives
A morning class will be offered 8:30-10:30 a.m. and an afternoon class will last from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Registration is a half-hour before each class.
Save the Beat is a reference to a heartbeat as well as to the police beat Mayor Collins worked during his 27-year career with the Toledo Police Department, Baumhower said.
Collins, 70, went into cardiac arrest Feb. 1 while driving a city-owned vehicle and crashed into a pole in South Toledo. Two people, Evelyn Johnson and Andra Crisp, both of South Toledo, noticed the vehicle off the road and stopped to help. They called 911, broke his window and administered CPR while waiting for help to arrive.
“I think Toledo wants to help,” Baumhower said. “We’re sitting there praying. We’re that type of people who will roll up their sleeves and give blood and reach into our wallets and give money. With Mayor Collins, with how he was rescued — two people who didn’t know who he was breaking glass and administering CPR — his entire career has been helping others and the moment he needed it, someone broke the glass.”
Nicole Knight Zmijewski, a firefighter/paramedic and CPR instructor with TFD, will lead the training at Save the Beat.
She has enlisted 30 volunteers from TFD as well as help from area departments, including Whitehouse, Perrysburg, Northwood, Oregon, Washington Township and more. ProMedica Toledo Hospital and Mercy St. Charles Hospital are also sending volunteers.
Dozens of CPR dummies — at least 70 — are coming from miles around, Zmijewski said. Five to six people can use each dummy for the training.
CPR is a lifesaving technique used when someone’s breathing or heartbeat has stopped. Participants will be trained in the basics of CPR, automatic defibrillators and the Heimlich maneuver. A full CPR certification lasts eight hours, but these sessions will give participants a good basic understanding, Zmijewski said. Each participant will get a certificate of attendance.
“I think education is key to everything,” Zmijewski said. “It’s important for the layperson to know CPR. You notice a friend or family down. That’s time for the call to get out.
“We can get to any point in the city in six to seven minutes, but brain damage starts before then, around four minutes. [Chest compressions] aren’t as effective as the heart pumping itself, but it’s better than nothing and it preserves brain function.”
Many people are turned off or intimidated by the mouth-to-mouth component of CPR, Zmijewski said, but the American Heart Association has made changes to their CPR protocol and mouth-to-mouth is no longer the standard. A “push hard, push fast” theme has simplified the procedure to just chest compressions, she said.
As of Feb. 5, Collins remains in critical condition at University of Toledo Medical Center. Toledo City Council President Paula Hicks-Hudson is serving as acting mayor.
Despite the seriousness of his condition, Zmijewski said Collins had everything go in his favor, from the good Samaritans who reacted quickly to the quick response time from first responders.
“That’s what’s supposed to happen,” she said. “Everything was perfect.”
Getting the word out is the biggest goal for Zmijewski. The more people who learn CPR the better it is for the public, she said.
Baumhower said he would like to see at least 1,000 people come through the course. He plans to invite local celebrities to participate, including TV personalities and Toledo Walleye hockey players.
ProMedica is covering the cost of the venue, Baumhower said. A ProMedica representative was unable to be reached for comment.
“Save the Beat will make for a memorable Valentine’s Day that has meaning,” Baumhower said. “It’s about saving a heart. It’s a nice way to support and do something as we wait to see what happens with Mayor Collins, as we watch his fight.
“Every second counts when it comes to these situations. You just don’t know who’s behind the glass. It could be your mom or your neighbor or a mayor.”
For more information or to register, visit www.savethebeattoledo.com. Registration is preferred, but walk-ins are also welcome.
